INSTALL                 package:base                 R Documentation

_I_n_s_t_a_l_l _A_d_d-_o_n _P_a_c_k_a_g_e_s

_D_e_s_c_r_i_p_t_i_o_n:

     Utility for installing add-on packages.

_U_s_a_g_e:

     R CMD INSTALL [options] [-l lib] pkgs

_A_r_g_u_m_e_n_t_s:

    pkgs: A list with the path names of the packages to be installed.

     lib: the path name of the R library tree to install to.

 options: a list of options through which in particular the process for
          building the help files can be controlled.

_D_e_t_a_i_l_s:

     If used as 'R CMD INSTALL pkgs' without explicitly specifying
     'lib', packages are installed into the library tree rooted at the
     first directory given in the environment variable 'R_LIBS' if this
     is set and non-null, and to the default library tree (which is
     rooted at '$R_HOME/library') otherwise.

     To install into the library tree 'lib', use 'R CMD INSTALL -l lib
     pkgs'.

     Both 'lib' and the elements of 'pkgs' may be absolute or relative
     path names. 'pkgs' can also contain name of package archive files
     of the form 'pkg_version.tar.gz' as obtained from CRAN, these are
     then extracted in a temporary directory.

     Some package sources contain a 'configure' script that can be
     passed arguments or variables via the option '--configure-args'
     and '--configure-vars', respectively, if necessary.  The latter is
     useful in particular if libraries or header files needed for the
     package are in non-system directories.  In this case, one can use
     the configure variables 'LIBS' and 'CPPFLAGS' to specify these
     locations (and set these via '--configure-vars'), see section
     "Configuration variables" in "R Installation and Administration"
     for more information.  One can also bypass the configure mechanism
     using the option '--no-configure'.

     If '--no-docs' is given, no help files are built.  Options
     '--no-text', '--no-html', and '--no-latex' suppress creating the
     text, HTML, and LaTeX versions, respectively.  The default is to
     build help files in all three versions.

     If the option '--save' is used, the installation procedure creates
     a binary image of the package code, which is then loaded when the
     package is attached, rather than evaluating the package source at
     that time.  Having a file 'install.R' in the package directory
     makes this the default behavior for the package (option
     '--no-save' overrides).  You may need  '--save' if your package
     requires other packages to evaluate its own source.  If the file
     'install.R' is non-empty, it should contain R expressions to be
     executed when the package is attached, after loading the saved
     image.  Options to be passed to R when creating the save image can
     be specified via '--save=ARGS'.

     If the attempt to install the package fails, leftovers are
     removed. If the package was already installed, the old version is
     restored.

     Use 'R CMD INSTALL --help' for more usage information.

_P_a_c_k_a_g_e_s _u_s_i_n_g _t_h_e _m_e_t_h_o_d_s _p_a_c_k_a_g_e:

     Packages that require the methods package, and that use functions
     such as 'setMethod' or 'setClass', should be installed by creating
     a binary image.

     The presence of a file named 'install.R' in the package's main
     directory causes an image to be saved.  Note that the file is not
     in the 'R' subdirectory: all the code in that subdirectory is used
     to construct the binary image.

     Normally, the file 'install.R' will be empty; if it does contain R
     expressions these will be evaluated when the package is attached,
     e.g. by a call to the function 'library'.  (Specifically, the
     source code evaluated for a package with a saved image consists of
     a suitable definition of '.First.lib' to ensure loading of the
     saved image, followed by the R code in file 'install.R', if any.)

_S_e_e _A_l_s_o:

     'REMOVE', 'update.packages' for automatic update of packages using
     the internet; the chapter on "Creating R packages" in "Writing R
     Extensions" (see the 'doc/manual' subdirectory of the R source
     tree).

